Tank divider

i am putting a perspex divider into the tank with lots of little hole to serperate the breeding pair of cichlids.
should i sand the perspex so that they cant see each other?
i am thinking it will be less stressfull if they cant see each other or what do u guys think?

 

We used a very matt like perspex at our tank in the office when our angels bred in the community tank and they were still ramming the divider because they saw the shadows of the fish on the other side. I do think that making it less transparent will definitely be less stressful to the fish though. Try plant quite a few long plants on the sides of the divider to minimize the shadows of the fish on the other side - when we did this it made a major difference to the number of times the fish were ramming the shadows.

 

thx so much for the advice , i will plant a wall of fern along it. Its only a tempory thing , i am building a 3 ft tank atm for the male to go into

 

why do they do that? Do they want to mate or fight?

 

mate i would presume. man it sux drilling 300 tiny holes

 

Reafer - drill 299 then it won't feel like 300

 

The parents would try and attack anything which comes near to their young - they perceive the shadows as being a threat to their babies.

 

Hi Reafer
Try to get hold of a Perspex that are not letting light thru, like, Code 068, it is a Solid White Perspex, 960 are Black. There are CNC Routing Companies in PE, that might help you/. Instead of drilling, you can also think of grooving (1.5mm wide), with a 60 degree engraver cutter. If you stayed in Cape Town, I could give you more advise, we cut Perspex nearly every day
Hop you get what you need.

 

Can the same divider (clear perspex) work in a 20/30 liter tank to breed Bettas?

 

You can design your own divider and then it is just a matter of cut it to size

 

Anyone in PE know were to get perspex?

 

From Maizey plastics in CT No Really you can order and they will ship

 

From Maizey plastics in PE , even easier

 

There you go Reafer

 

Shot, any chance you know rough estimate of Rxx per square meter?

 

it all depends on the thickness and the type of perspex and in general perspex is expencive , why do u want perspex ? normal plastic sheets are MUCH cheaper think about R20 a square

 

Go for the cheapest - ABS plastic - it is only a divider

 

True true i was just finding out for future projects

 

Got home and found fry in the community 4ft .... did not want to loose the kribs again so made a quick divider from 3mm ABS ... works like a charm, well we will see in the morning if anybody crossed the wall.



Yes I did trash the plants while installing and herding the other fish.

 

How is the water flowing from one side of the tank to the other and what is the difference in temp between the two sides or do you have a heater on each side???